Popularity and Its Perks
by DoItForNarnia
Summary: I have enough resources to master the puppets that call themselves people. I can manipulate even the rebels that like to call themselves individuals. Like I said, I am the queen bee. AH OOC
1. Returning and Ruling

**Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN! But Jasper can feel free to own me.**

**AN: My first story on here, I hope you enjoy. It's not a typical high school fic, and I tried to mix up the stereotpyes. Enjoy!**

**Chapter One: Returning and Ruling**

Being the queen bee of a school definitely has its perks. That cannot be denied. You can only get to that status by being pretty, confident, reasonably rich, and contrary to popular belief, intelligent. You have to be charismatic, which I am. Powers of persuasion, blackmail and bribery are also qualities stored in my artillery.

As the ruler, I know absolutely everything that goes on in the school. Hell, I either encourage, discourage or straight out forbid it. I can make or break reputations; I allocate relationships; I protect those I feel I should. Likewise, I can throw someone straight into the lion's den.

Another year at Forks Institute of Learning, boarding school to the rich, super-talented or both, was not my idea of fun, but I can make it enjoyable enough. I have enough resources to master the puppets that call themselves people. I can manipulate even the rebels that like to call themselves individuals. Like I said, I am the queen bee.

And those were my thoughts as I strode out of my father's car onto the neatly gravelled drive leading up to the school. I hovered by my father as he took my bags out of the car, and gave him a small kiss on the cheek as we said our goodbyes. I wouldn't see him until Christmas, and even then we'd rarely have a moment together without one of his almost teenage girlfriends lurking by. Deciding I didn't want to trouble myself by attempting to carry my three cases to the main building, I employed the services of three nearby juniors. I was a senior myself this year, only giving me more power than before. The three eager boys fought over the heaviest bag, courageously trying to impress me with their muscles. One was fairly attractive, but his hair was far too artificial for my taste. Oppositely to what most of the student body thought, I usually went for the individual type when I needed some release, choosing to keep the preppy, popular sort for when I needed a publicly acceptable date.

I strutted confidently up the stairs, the boys flanking my sides while I swayed my hips, my three inch heels clicking up the stone steps. A girl who I briefly recognised as a freshman from last year opened the large oak door for us to slip through. I waltzed straight up to the front desk, despite their being three other people in front of me. The receptionist barely gave my actions a second glance - even the teachers accepted how untouchable I was - before digging out my schedule and handing it to me, along with my room key and school calendar. Unfortunately, even my status couldn't get me out of having a roommate. If worst came to worst, and I couldn't stand them, I would simply make them trade with someone else. I gave the woman a polite thank you, nodded to her, and exited the room once more, the boys in tow. We journeyed across the campus to the dorm blocks.

The main building housed all the offices, classrooms, halls, drama stages and the dining room. A two minute walk from there gave way to the dormitory buildings. There were three in total: Frost, Wilde and Hardy, all after famous poets. I can't say I loved that they were all male, but the name of my dorm wasn't my greatest concern. Just in view of the dorms lay the PE department, with completely state of the art equipment, as resided in every part of the school. People from all over the country would kill to get a place here, and though there were many different groups, cliques and stereotypes here, the whole thing was pretty elite. We were all united in that aspect.

I told the boys to stop outside a room on the first floor. The room wasn't mine, but I wouldn't allow them to know my real room number. I then asked three girls conversing in the corridor to help me. They jumped to it, and soon my bags were on the floor in my room. I placed my things around the half of the room that I claimed as my own. Though I was pretty much royalty here, I wasn't a complete bitch unnecessarily; I would let them have their space, whoever they happened to be.

I didn't have to wait long before she arrived. She was lugging two brown suitcases and some sort of musical instrument case sat on her back. She was panting slightly, and looked glad that I had left her the bed nearest the door. The room was large, and I wasn't sure how long she could keep carrying that stuff. I regarded her with a blank expression, observing her to see if I would have to have her switched after only a few moments. She looked meek, but didn't have that doormat look about her.

She placed her bags down and turned to look at me. She was taller than me, probably around five-seven, with think blonde hair and delicate features. She would have been extremely beautiful, perhaps more so than me, if not for the huge glasses magnifying her eyes and her silky hair pulled back into a messy plait down her neck. I didn't recognise her at all.

"You're new here," I stated.

"Yeah, I just got accepted here," she replied. Good, the girl didn't try give me her life story.

"What's your name?" I enquired. I needed to know some things about her if I were to keep her here. She could be a closet junkie, and that would have a very bad impact if not found out straight away.

"Rosalie Hale."

"Mine's Alice Brandon. Before anything, you need to know some things. One, I _am_ the queen bee here, and I pretty much run this place. You will learn over time that certain things are untouchable if you don't want your life here to be hell. Judging by that that was on your back, you'll fit in perfectly with the band. You'll do well to stay there. Mess with things that don't concern you, and you will find that there are consequences. Understand?"

The girl looked slightly overwhelmed, and had that rabbit caught in headlights look to her. She nodded. "Yes."

"I'm not saying any of this to be nasty, I just need this place kept in order, and the balance kept. Do you have any siblings?" I asked, my voice relatively kind.

"A twin brother. He's a senior, too."

"I see. I haven't found a reason to dislike you yet, so you'll be staying here for the moment. Don't expect a friendship of any sort, though. Like I said, stick to the band." I looked down at my watch, realising it was nearly time to go to dinner. "It's dinner in a few minutes. I can have someone show you around the campus for the next day or so, if you like?" I asked.

She looked at me in confusion. "Um, yes, I suppose."

I nodded. "They'll be here soon."

Grabbing my phone, jacket and some money, I left the room to find someone to guide Rosalie about for a bit. It didn't take me long; I found one of the band geeks entering her room. I racked my brains to remember her name, and called her over subtly.

"Angela, right?" I asked.

She regarded me suspiciously. "Yes." I quite liked this girl, in a 'in a world without cliques, we could be friends' sort of way. She was strong-willed, and could stick up for herself. Her friend choices clarified where she stood socially, however.

"I have a new roommate. She plays… I'm not sure what, actually, and I don't really care. She just needs someone to show her around for a bit. Can you do that?"

Angela nodded. "I have nothing better to do."

"Excellent. Room three-six-four. She's my roommate, and I have to deal with her, so if I find she's drowning, there'll be words, got it?" I said sternly.

"Uh-huh," she replied, seemingly unconcerned by my tone. This was why I liked her. She obeyed without being a doormat, and showing some air of defiance. I watched her trot off to my room, and I made my way across campus to the dining room.

The dining room was a social affair at Forks Institute. Too posh to be called a cafeteria, the dining room was its name. There were several long tables in the large room, each seating about six people on each side. The direct centre table belonged to me, and my… elite circle. It changed slightly every so often, if I felt that someone was changing to my dislike. Conversely, if I felt like giving someone a trial run, they were invited to the one seat that I always kept empty. That, and the two tables either side of it, were the only ones assigned. Everyone else sat at a different table each time. They still sat in their groups, though, that was a given. The two tables next to me were the people just out of elite status, but the next in line to be called upon. Most were seniors, but several were juniors.

I usually liked to arrive a few moments after everyone got in there, to make my appearance an announcement. Today was no different. If anything, it was so much better. The start of a new year, new faces and judgements. Everyone sat with baited breath one the first day back to see who, if anyone, I would remove from the elite. I gave the masses their wish today, as I saw Tanya Denali sat down, looking anxious. She had reason to. She had kissed Garrett Summers on the last day of school last year. She had messed with a relationship that _I _had put together, thus kicking herself out of the elite. Garrett's relationship with Kate had survived the summer, so I had heard, which I was glad for, but that didn't cancel out what Tanya had done. To her own cousin no less.

I got myself a tray of food and walked over to the centre table.

"Hi, Alice," was the greeting from most of them. I could hear the tremble in Tanya's voice, and I was pleased. It meant that I was doing my job properly. She knew I wouldn't make a scene. Not that sort, anyway. Everyone around knew that I wouldn't scream, or shout, or yell at her to leave. No, I would look calmly and blankly at her, and politely ask her to leave. The room would be silent, and she would walk in shame to another table, one willing to house her. If there were none, I would make sure that there was one tomorrow. Though she was no longer elite, she would fit in somewhere, unless she chose not to.

"Hello, everyone. Tanya, why are you sitting here?" I asked calmly. The table tensed, sending waves out to the rest of the room. A hushed silence descended on the pupils of Forks Institute.

"I was, uh, I thought…" she trailed off, not knowing what to say.

"You kissed Garrett in the summer," I stated. Garrett, sat near me next to Kate, flinched, while Kate glared at Tanya.

"I just-" she began.

"I'm sorry, Tanya, but you tried to ruin something I created. You knew the rules. You were trusted for a while, but you broke that." Then I uttered the words that everyone there was itching to hear. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave, Tanya. I don't want to hear about you messing with things that aren't your concern again, do you understand?"

She nodded weakly, tears building. I ignored them. She stood up gracefully, trying to leave with some amount of dignity. She had none; her being 'removed' as some liked to call it proved that. She left the room quickly, taking the apple from her tray and fleeing. I would have to think overnight about where she would fit in now.

A minute passed. And then, once I picked up my fork and started to eat, the whole room continued like nothing had even transpired. The room burst into conversation, and I took the time to see what new faces there were this year.

Real life was different to in the movies. In films, you always saw the cliques sitting at the same tables every lunch. This wasn't true in our case, they moved around. Sure, the cliques were set in stone, but I wasn't so cruel as to tie them down with special seating plans.

The emo and goth population resided in the corner of the room closest to the bathrooms. They talked, they laughed, and were not complete vampires. My cousin, Edward Cullen was a full-on goth. There was no emo about it; it was big Doc Martens, long leather coats and white eye makeup all the way. They knew where they stood. The band geeks occupied the table nearest the door. They were a large clique, but spent so much time practicing that they rarely sat down here at meals. Then there was the artists. The odd musician fell in there, too, but usually the solo pianists or guitarists. That particular group consisted of the kids who took textiles, drama, media and general art studies. I had actually paid a few of them to make me clothes upon occasion.

Repeating my earlier comment, life is nothing like the movies. In real life, the 'loners' don't all sit on the same table, glaring at the people having fun, and eating in silence. They scatter themselves around the room, often conversing with someone with similar interests. Or seeming lack of.

The academics took up a large portion of the bottom of the room. The ones completely focused on achieving, with no time for fun and games. Namely the ones riding on a scholarship here. The skaters and tomboys were kind of universal at Forks Institute, hanging around together, generally slacking off. Lastly, on the final table was an enigmatic little group that I hadn't ever been able to allot a name to. There was no apparent group leader, and they had no differentiating style. They rarely caused trouble, and though not immune to my rule, they never really had reason to come under it.

There were about ten of them. The students in their little group were Ben Cheney, Vanessa Wolff, Jessica Stanley, Laurent DePaul and Victoria Lemmings. They were a very close-knit group, fiercely protective, and completely objective to joining my group. I had asked both Edward, Victoria and Jessica upon occasion, and all had declined. They were a curious group, but totally innocent.

"So, Alice, how was your summer?" Emmett asked. Ah, Emmett. He was the king to my queen, the left to my right, the one person at Forks Institute with almost as much power as me. Almost. He was the loveable big brother I'd never wanted but somehow got. Star of the football team, he was automatically granted popularity.

"It was alright. Nothing terrible exciting, but the summer never is. Dad spent the whole of it with his little 'friends' so I had the beach house to myself a lot," I replied.

"Didn't you get completely bored?" James asked.

"Totally. But the local… entertainment kept me occupied," I grinned.

"I'm shocked, Alice. I hope you didn't do anything I wouldn't do," Emmett said in mock horror.

"Even if I didn't, that would give me a pretty wide spectrum wouldn't it?" I said innocently, tilting my head to the side whilst grinning mischievously.

The table laughed. I hadn't been aware that everyone was in on the conversation. "What about you, Emmett, meet any pretty girls back home?"

"A fair few. I actually had a fling lasting more than a fortnight."

"Wow, seriously?" I laughed. "That's a pretty big achievement for you."

"I know. You should try dating every now and again instead of screwing random guys when you're home for the holidays. Even fucking some of the guys at school might help; I have no idea how you go so long without getting any."

"The answer is simple, Emmett. I refuse to let myself be ruled by my hormones. I am mature enough to know not to mix my school life with pleasure."

"Isn't it mix business and pleasure?" Kate asked from a few seats down.

"The school is my business. I'm no less than the CEO, and I can't very well go around doing my employees, can I? it would be so very unprofessional of me," I countered. I was saying it mockingly, but I was serious. I wasn't about to mess with the perfect balance I maintained. Dating could be paid attention to later, that's what college is for.

The subject was changed then, and we moved on to talking about the new faces. I told them about my new roommate, and I pointed her out across the room. Kate and Irina both thought she was pretty, and we wondered how we could get her looking better without showing any outward signs of friendship. I amended that she would have to stay looking frumpy for now, until we could find the time and means to get her a new look.

I asked if anyone knew her brother, as I hadn't seen him yet, and I wanted to know if he could be Elite material. It occurred to me that I didn't know his name yet. No matter, I would find out later. I continued looking around for new arrivals, when I noticed the teachers' table. A medium height, brunette woman was sat laughing at something one of the other teachers said.

She was very pretty, classically beautiful, I suppose you could say. Her long brown hair and eyes gave her a girl-next-door look, but her womanly figure, emphasised by a silver silk blouse and high-waisted, black pencil skirt proved otherwise. The fifty-seven year old Mr Varner was already drooling over her, staring intently at her chest.

"Who's that teacher?" I asked vaguely, to no one in particular.

"Ms Bella Swan," Irina replied. "My schedule has her name on for English, and she's the only new teacher here."

"Hmm… Ms, not Miss?" I enquired.

"Yep. I found out from Principal Cullen that she's twenty-six, and divorced."

"So young?"

"Yeah, she was married to some random, but they split about a year back because he realised he wanted her mom over her," Irina informed me.

"Ew. That's disgusting. Do you know what happened next?"

"The guy was rich, a baseball player, Phil Dwyer. She was extremely pissed, and worked to get all she could when they divorced. She must have had one hell of a lawyer, because she got her hands on a couple of million. She hasn't spoken to him or her mom on over a year."

"Her mom actually got with him?" Emmett asked, stunned.

"Turns out they'd been having an affair since before he married Swan," Irina concluded.

I knew better than to ask how she found all this out. She could have the basics from Principal Cullen and have the full story, plus details in less than an hour. Serial gossip, Irina was a brilliant source. And the sort of person you never let anything slip near.

"Wow," I said, very matter-of-factly.

Most of us had finished our food by then, and decided to go hang out by our haunt, a small cluster of logs and benches by the giant lake. I declined the offer, wanting to go get some rest and a shower before school began tomorrow. I told them all goodnight, and walked back to my room. I quickly showered, not bothering to blow-dry my short hair. I had had it cut over the holidays, and it was now incredibly easy to manage, even without drying it. I towel-dried it, and threw myself down on the bed. This was sure to be an interesting year.

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**AN: So, what did we think? Good or bad? Yea or nay? Hit or miss? I think you get the picture. **

**A little info: The story will mainly be told from Alice's story for a couple of reasons. One, I like writing from the point of view of the smooth, arrogant character. I find it surprisingly easy. Two, there will be a lot of things going on in this story, and Alice knows them all, so rather than tell it from the third person, OR switching around a lot, I'm going to tell it from the point of view of the all-knowing one lol. But, to keep her on her toes, we will soon see the arrival of a certain (un)desirable.**

**Also, Alice and Emmett aren't together, nor will they be or have ever been. However, they have hooked up once or twice. But now it's completely platonic. **

**Lastly, sorry for rambling, the whole story is going to be OOC, so if that's not your cup of tea then I recommend something else. But this is how I wanted it, a change from the norm, without Rosalie being an ice bitch and Alice being a hyper active fashion designer, Bella being completely introverted, and Edward being a player. Thank you guys.**

**Review, if you will.**

**Thanks much,**

**Abby x**

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	2. Control and Confrontations

Disclaimer: Never have, never will. But I'll let you know if it happens.

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AN: Chapter Two!!! Are we excited? I am… well, I hop you enjoy, I haven't really got much to say. Excuse any spelling mistakes, my brother is kicking me off, and I want to get this up tonight because I'm busy tomorrow.

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**Chapter Two: Control and Confrontations**

I woke up quite early on Monday morning, and went straight to the shower. Rosalie was fast asleep when I left, and still was when I came out of the shower, towelling my hair. She woke up not long afterwards, and headed straight to the bathroom. I used that time to get dressed while I was alone.

Forks Institute had a decent enough uniform, consisting of a black skirt or trousers, white shirts, a black tie with bottle green and blue strips, and black jumpers. Black shoes were also required, so I stuck a pair of flat pumps on over my tights. When I was dressed, I began straightening my hair, flicking the ends out slightly for volume. Rosalie had emerged by the time it came for me to do my makeup, so I took my bag into the bathroom and stuck some mascara and eyeliner on. My skin was pretty much flawless, so nothing needed there.

When I was done, I took my almost empty bag straight down to breakfast, so I didn't have to go get it afterwards. I left quietly, and ended up being one of the first people downstairs. I grabbed myself and apple and sat at my table along with Kate. People started streaming in after that, and the next forty-five minutes was full of noise, with people just starting to wake up ready for the day ahead. Halfway through, there was an announcement over the speakers telling us that we had an assembly first period, so I walked to the main hall with Kate, Garrett and Irina in tow. We sat down towards the back, and waited for everyone else to seat themselves.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen," Principal Cullen said. Yes, Cullen. He was Edward's father, and therefore my uncle. He and my father were brothers. "I trust you all had a good summer. For our older students, welcome back, and for our freshmen and new students, welcome. I hope your next year here will be enjoyable and beneficial."

I completely tuned out after that; it was the same speech every year, and I could almost say it by heart.

"I'd like to introduce some new staff to our team, also. First of all, we have a new head of the English department, Ms Bella Swan. Secondly, our new student guidance counsellor, Mr Aro Volturi will also be joining our school. I hope you will all make them feel very welcome here at FIL."

There wasn't much more after that, just simple instructions, rules, exam timetables and trip information. We were eventually dismissed, and headed straight to our second lesson. I checked my schedule.

"Do any of you guys have English now?" I asked around. Everyone apart from James shook their heads. "Excellent. Come on, James."

He trotted obediently after me, and we arrived quickly on the first floor, where Ms Swan's classroom was situated. Most of the class was already in there, but as per usual, they had left the back row clear, so my friends and I could sit there. I had forgotten how great it felt to have a mass of people cater to your every whim without even having to ask.

Most students had begun undoing their top buttons and rolling their shirt or jumper sleeves up now that they were away from the united front of the teachers. Having the faculty under my control, they turned a blind eye to my uniform; rolled up sleeves, rolled over skirt, makeup and bright nail polish were ignored thanks to my social standing. Even the teachers couldn't touch me.

I noticed Edward sat in the corner near me, with one of his little goth pals, Lauren Mallory. I saw he had donned his hug boots and grinned at him. He smiled back, his bright green eyes standing out against the pale, fake white of his skin and the black around his eyes.

"Good morning, class," a voice said. I looked around to see that it was Ms Swan. "How is everyone?" she asked. The reply was so silent and awkward that I swore I saw a tumbleweed fly across the room. "Excellent," she said, as if we had all replied with enthusiasm.

"Well, I'll just take attendance and we'll begin, shall we?" she asked. She began calling everyone's names, pausing for a moment after she said my own. I smirked at her; of course she knew who I was. When she was finished, she took a box of books from her shelf and asked some kid to hand them out. When we got them, I saw that they were all entitled _Romeo and Juliet._ I groaned audibly.

"What was that for?" James asked me.

"I hate this book."

"Did you have something to say, Miss Brandon?" Ms Swan asked.

"Not really, Miss, I was just telling James how I didn't like this book," I replied innocently. I saw annoyance flash briefly across her features. _Ah, she loves it. Probably a hopeless romantic, too._

"Do you have a problem with the choice of book?" she asked tersely.

"I just think it's slightly overrated for a short, violent book based on nothing but physical attraction and fighting," I explained. A couple of whispers went around the class, wondering if Ms Swan had established that I was untouchable, and whether she'd try to punish me.

"But there are many other themes to it, Alice. Family loyalty, honour, love and friendship are just a few."

"But all of those are cast aside by the families' love of violence and war. And the fact that Romeo moves swiftly from one girl to another sets quite a negative image, don't you think? He seems very fickle to me, marrying one woman when he swear he loves another. And Juliet does nothing except sit around and cry over everything. She could at least have escaped with Romeo," I concluded. James looked at me in shock, probably wondering when I had read the book. Well, I had a lot of free time in the summer.

"But you're missing the point, Alice. The reason he abandons his pursuit of Rosalind is because he falls in love with Juliet, an-"

"Because she's pretty," I interrupted.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't interrupt me, Alice."

I didn't say anything. I just looked at her defiantly, picking at my nails. She sighed in irritation, and carried on passing the book around. The class managed to get through the first two scenes before the bell went, announcing that it was time for our third lesson. It passed quickly, as did our break and the next two lessons, and before I knew it, it was time for lunch. I waited a moment, allowing the classroom to empty and the corridors to clear before heading to the dining room.

All eyes were on me once more, and I gave a disdainful look to one of the junior girls rolling her eyes at my entrance. I grabbed myself a plate of food and took my usual seat. I noticed Tanya trying to sit at one of the tables at either side of mine. I walked over to her, politely telling her no. She was not welcome, and if she persisted, then I would have to sort things out. I returned to my seat, after her rushed and quite tearful exit. She should know by now that tears never work on me. Ever.

"Have you seen the male Hale twin?" Irina gushed. My attention peaked. I needed to know everyone here, and once I knew his name, I would have Irina find out any information.

"What's his name?" I asked. "What do you know about him?" I knew I didn't sound like I liked him; everyone around FIL knew that I knew everything about everybody - that was just how it worked.

"He's called Jasper. He and his sister obviously have good genes, because he's totally hot. He has this gorgeous blonde hair, and sparkly green eyes, and-"

"Irina, focus," I snapped.

"Oh, right. He and his sister aren't here on a scholarship, their parents are clearly paying a lot of money, because you can tell that he's a troublemaker just by looking at him. I bet they're bribing Principal Cullen and the governors just to keep him away from them. He's got three piercing in his ear, an eyebrow bar, and a tongue piercing. Varner tried to make him take them out, but he ignored him, jut taking his gum out and sticking it under the desk. He sent him out, and he went, but he came back five minutes later when Cullen set him back."

Wow. This boy seemed like trouble, and I would definitely have to keep my eye on him. Most kids were shit scared of Varner, so if this guy ignored him, he could pose a risk to my hierarchy.

"Whoa. Irina, find out what you can on him. I want their reason for switching schools, grades, all that kind of thing. Who has he been hanging around with?"

Irina shrugged, but Kate answered the question. "Cullen assigned Tyler Crowley to be his 'buddy,' but Jasper ditched him ten minutes after Tyler introduced himself."

I laughed. Tyler Crowley was possibly the most annoying kid on the face of the earth. He was a total math and science geek, applying that knowledge to his love of skateboarding. He could bore the life out of anyone on either subject.

"Maybe I should get him sat with us one day," I wondered aloud.

"Somehow I don't think he would," Irina replied. "He seemed pretty solitary, and not exactly sociable."

"Well, we'll just have to change that then, won't we?"

I glanced around the table, and realised that the room had been pretty quiet all lunchtime. It was then that I realised that there was an extra seat on my table, ever since Tanya's departure yesterday. I gave the two adjacent tables a quick look through, and picked a new arrival. I stood up, and walked straight over to him.

Eric Yorkie was a senior, like us, and captain of the basketball team. He would have been sat on my table already, but I asked him to move since he screwed Jessica Stanley last April. She was going out with Ben Cheney at the time, and I didn't like him messing things up. He'd redeemed himself since, though, and was now about to be invited back. Of course, it helped that Eric was one of the hottest guys in our school. He had longish, soft black hair and blue eyes. He had an extremely cute smile, so it really was no wonder that Jessica went for him.

"Eric, sweetie, we have a spare seat near us if you're interested," I asked sweetly, smiling at him and batting my eyes expectantly.

"Sure, Alice. I'll see you later, guys," he said, grabbing his food and following me. I gestured to the seat on the end of the table, next to James, and walked back to my own. The whole dining room was clearly discussing this latest development, and I figured I needed to speak to Irina.

"Irina, rumours are going to spread about my asking Eric back over here. Divert them, would you?" I told her.

She nodded, her mouth too full of pasta to speak, and I smiled. The students would probably think that I'd invited Eric over because I liked him, considering I threw him out last year, but that wasn't the case. He was a funny guy, a good friend, and damn nice to look at.

"Hey, where's Emmett?" I asked. "I haven't seen him since the assembly this morning."

"I saw him talking to Jacob Black on my way down. James was with me," Garrett said, retracting from his and Kate's game of tonsil tennis. James nodded in agreement.

"Black… the drama guy? The one who stars in, like, every production?" Kate interjected.

"Yeah, that's right. I have no idea why Em was talking to him, though. It's not like they're friends or anything."

"Maybe they have a project together?" James put in.

"On the first day?" I questioned. It seemed unlikely, but I wouldn't press the matter.

They all shrugged, and carried on eating. The bell eventually rang, and I travelled to my next lesson - higher level chemistry. I quite liked the subject, and had managed to secure a decent teacher again this year. Mr Monroe was a great teacher, and one of the few who actually knew what they were doing. No one was in my class, so I walked alone ignoring the poor sophomore who tried to ask me out on Friday night. I felt briefly sorry for him, before I began thinking about more important things.

Only one of two people arrived in class after me, including Mr Monroe, so I didn't have to wait long. I took my seat at the back, and no one sat next to me. It was the only seat left, and Mr Monroe had just finished taking attendance when a blonde haired beauty walked into the classroom. The studs in his eyebrow and ear immediately had me recognise him as Jasper Hale.

I was shocked to notice that he was hotter that Eric, with his dishevelled blonde hair flowing around his ears in large curls, and ending at the top of his neck. It was the sort of hair that you wanted to scrunch up in your hand. I found myself wondering what sort of shampoo he used. His green eyes stood out in contrast to his lightly tanned skin, and his dark lips were prominent against his strong, masculine facial structure. _Shit, he is the most gorgeous creature to walk the face of the earth._

Mr Monroe placed him in the last available seat - next to me. I figured I'd introduce myself. If he didn't already know me, which he should, then he would do soon.

"Alice Brandon," I said to him, sticking out my hand. He blatantly ignored it, and turned to face me.

"I know who you are," he replied.

"Oh, really? I take it you're Jasper?" I enquired.

"Yes, and yes."

"So, how did you know who I am?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"Please, don't act the ditz. You know full well that everyone knows who you are, and that I would find out within ten minutes of arriving here. It's the same reason that you knew who I was."

"Well, I was only trying to be nice. It's quite a good quality to have."

"You're not _nice._" He spat out the word. "You're just a dictator, leading the masses of sheep that populate this school. I'm telling you now, I am not one of them. I will not allow myself to fall victim to you and your precious kingdom."

How dare he? I had worked hard to establish this school, it was ordered, structured, and I had every right to shape these people when they would have no structure without me! I let them keep their cliques and groups, and in return they all aspired to be like me, successful and smooth. I had every right enjoy my leadership.

I glared at him. "You might not know it now, but I'll forgive you, you're new. But one day, in the very near future, you will bend to my will, and you will fall in line. Everyone does, and I have dealt with so called individuals who try to avoid it. It's inevitable, so don't think you don't count."

He snorted, and turned back to the front of class, ignoring me for the rest of the lesson. _That's what I thought._

After classes ended, I went straight back to my room to get on with the little homework I had been given. When I had done, I decided to go see Emmett. He had told me his room number last night, so I made my way to the Frost building, where Emmett resided in room two-nine-four. I approached the door, and could hear classical music coming from the room. Expecting it to be Emmett's roommate, I thought nothing of it. But then I heard a thump, and a gravely "Dammit."

"Em?" I called, knocking on the door. The music was turned off, and Emmett opened it, wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt. He seemed quite flushed, and was slightly out of breath when he answered.

"Hey, Alice. How's it going?"

"Uh, it's good, thanks. Why were you listening to classical music?" I asked.

"Oh, I was just finding a decent radio station. It got jammed." I guessed that Emmett taking his temper out on the radio must have been the thump I heard.

"Where were you at lunch? We missed you," I said.

"I didn't feel great, so I decided to hang around up here during lunch."

"Oh, okay. It's just that James and Garrett saw you talking to Jacob Black."

Emmett raised his eyebrow. "You're nose today, aren't you? If you must know, he's my biology partner, and I was asking him about a project we're getting next week."

"Oh, I see." It explained why he wasn't at lunch, and why he was talking to Jacob. The story was legitimate enough, but I was sure that he wasn't telling me something. I decided to let it go, though, because I missed my friend, and had barely seen him since he returned.

Emmett was my only real friend at Forks Institute. Sure, I had a crowd that I hung around with, but none of them were really my friends. They might have been useful, for information and such, but none of them were important. I would easily be able to ask them to leave if they messed up my balance, but with Emmett that would be another story. Then again, no one would question what I did, they all knew better than that. But it would show weakness on my part, allowing someone to actually _get close _to Alice Brandon. It was unheard of, in all honesty. I was known for my cold demeanour, my arrogant air and unapproachable aura. Keeping that up meant keeping control of things, and I liked that. I liked feeling people under me, knowing they would kill to be considered one of the elite few asked to join me. I also knew that Kate, Irina, Garrett, James and now Eric were basking in their popularity, desperately hoping they wouldn't be the next ones cast aside, whether from a fault on their part, or boredom on my own. My decree was an unstable one, and a fun one at that.

A couple of hours catching up with Emmett passed, and I decided to catch up with the guys by the lake tonight. I was on my way outside, when I felt a sharp slap on my ass, and when I turned around, I caught a glimpse of blonde and a ghost of a snicker flying round a corner. I scowled, and carried on walking to the lake, ignoring the hormonal rush that came to me when I wondered if that had in fact been Jasper Hale.

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**AN: So, here we go, chapter two! Did we like it? Let me know what you think of it.**

**Are we liking the stereotypes so far? I really tried to mix them up, because I was totally bored of playboy Edward and Ice bitch Rosalie. So I thought, why not make Edward hardcore goth (NOT EMO), Alice a dictating biatch and Emmett… well you'll see.**

**I'm English, so some spellings might be a bit different, we'll see as we go along, shall we?**

**Anyways, thanks much,**

**Abby x**


	3. Inventory and Innovations

**Disclaimer: Roses are red, violets are blue, I don't own Twilight, but neither do you!**

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**AN: Hello, people! And here I bring to you… chapter three! I DID get chance to use the computer tonight, so I'm glad. I'm only going to update every day as long as I can, it won't be always. **

**Moving on, we're kind moving out of the transitional period, and onto more action. So thanks for bearing with me, and here we go.**

**Sorry if you already got an alert on this, but I took it down to edit it a bit.**

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**Chapter Three: Inventory and Innovations**

The rest of the week passed quickly, and I found out that I had at least three classes with Jasper Hale, much to my dismay. I probably had more than that, but he didn't seem to feel like turning up to many. That, on the other hand, pleased me, meaning I could get on with my work in peace.

Saturday soon arrived, and I was planning on touring around campus, Irina and maybe someone else with me, and sorting out who was here, what new faces we had, and who needed putting in their place. I liked to think of this as taking inventory, and I did it a couple of times a year. People change, therefore my lists do. I generally speak to a few people, and sort out cliques. This was no different, and after a long, relaxing bath, I knocked on Kate's and Irina's doors and we walked to the top floor of the Wilde building.

I was immediately assaulted by male freshmen throwing a football down the corridor, and I was pissed when it skimmed past my face. I glared at the two kinds, letting them know not to piss me off. Their eyes widened and they scampered off to their various rooms. I noticed that this was one of male floors. There were four floors in each dorm; two male and two female. I swept down the hall, looking through open doorways and looking for new faces. I was met by a familiar one about halfway down.

"Hey, Alice," Edward said.

"Hi, Edward," I replied. He frowned at me. Oh, yeah, I forgot his little nickname. "Oh, sorry, _Blade_."

"Thank you," he conceded. "What brings you here?" He put down the pale makeup compact he was holding on the dresser.

"Inventory," I stated simply. He rolled his eyes; he never had approved of my running the school. I don't see why, if I liked it and could do it, why not? I called him by his bloody nickname, so he could respect me, too.

"Still not letting it go?"

"Nope. Anyway, we have to go. Bye, _Blade._"

We left, and carried on down the corridor. I heard Irina's muffled giggles and sighed. She had always liked Edward, ever since we started here, and didn't exactly hide the fact. In fact, I knew she'd ask him out if I allowed it. But I wouldn't. I couldn't allow a bridge to be built between us and them, it wasn't to be done. Sure, the cliques could intermingle, but anyone who was Elite, or anything like it, was to only date people within our group. That was just how I had it, and it worked. Irina had made do with staring wistfully at my cousin for the past few years, and she could carry on doing it.

We finished that floor quickly. There were very few freshmen on the floor, and the ones that I found were easy to allocate. Unless the freshmen were very unique, or had a set interest, they were pretty much a group of their own. It made things a lot easier for me. The floor below - my floor - was much the same. The girls were easy to sort in general, so the whole thing didn't take very long. In fact, our whole dorm building was done quickly, and Kate and Irina were both happy to be making good time.

The problem occurred in the Hardy building. We were on the second floor, and Irina told me that the door we were approaching belonged to Jasper Hale.

"You know, I heard he has a tattoo," Irina gushed as we walked up.

"Oh, please, that's probably complete crap. Sure, he has a few things pierced, but he's not that hardcore," I said.

I knocked on a door only to find Jasper stood there, half dressed in only a pair of three quarter length shorts. I heard Kate gasp - she had a thing for blondes - and I rolled my eyes. Yes, he was incredibly easy on the eyes, and really quite gorgeous, but we had a job to do.

"Can I help you?" he asked sarcastically.

Annoyed by Kate's giggling, I sighed in frustration. "You can start by putting on a shirt," I snapped.

He raised his eyebrow and smirked. "No, thanks, I'm fine as I am."

"Ugh, fine. Okay, firstly, you're new here, and we need to allocate you a group."

He laughed straight in my face. "You are kidding, right? You actually go around looking at people, finding shit out about them and sorting them into 'groups'? What are you, Hitler?"

"No, I'm simply trying to create order. In case you haven't noticed, this is one of the best schools in the country, and that is not solely to do with the academics. I've spent all my life here working my way up to this, and you are not about to mess it up by refusing to fit in."

"No."

"What?"

"I said no. I don't want to be part of your little regime, and I don't want to be stereotyped. I honestly don't know how you got this far in the first place."

I narrowed my eyes. "I got this way by relating to people, by connecting with them."

"No, sweetheart, you got this way by watching too many movies and aspiring to be the clueless bimbos you obviously idolise so much," he retorted, leaning against the doorway and folding his arms cockily. I heard Irina and Kate mumble something behind me. I turned to them.

"Girls, can you take the rest of the corridor for me? I need to sort some things out here," I asked them. They nodded their agreement and set off. I turned back to Jasper. "Look, listen to me, because I'm not going to repeat this. I have power in many, many places, and if you step out of line then there will be consequences. You'll be in hell, and I'll enjoy every minute of it," I hissed angrily.

"Been there, done that, bought the t-shirt," he said cockily.

"I wouldn't have thought so," I quipped, looking at his bare chest icily. Well, that was my plan. Instead I ended up glancing, then looking for a little longer before blatantly staring and drooling over his fantastic pecs. _Phwoar. _Then, before I knew it, he had grabbed me by the waist and dragged me into his room.

I gave a little squeak as he covered my lips with his, tracing them with his warm tongue. His arms curled round me, one on my hips and the other on my back, an he nibbled at my lip like there was no tomorrow. At the time, I hoped he wouldn't bite my lip off. _On second thoughts, feel free._

All reason escaped me then, and I threw thoughts of control and order out of the window as I wound my hands into his hair. I moved my face slightly and sucked on his neck as he found my earlobe, and set to work making me squeak once more, this time in pleasure. He moaned as I skimmed my lips over the veins in his neck, and he yanked me back when I tried to pull away.

"Shit, Hale, what the hell was that?" I gasped, my eyes wide.

"I have no idea," he replied honestly, just as breathless as I was.

"What am I doing?" I asked more to myself than to him. In fact, it wasn't really directed at me, since I had absolutely no idea.

Jasper looked deep in thought for a moment before looking at me. "Meet me outside the art block at eight tonight. We can… negotiate."

"What, work out a middle ground?" I asked. I was confused. We'd just kissed violently and passionately, going against all that I stood for, and now we were talking business. This guy was a complete mystery.

"Something like that," he mumbled quietly. I looked at him in unease, worried by his reaction. Then something weird happened. "Don't worry, I wont hurt you," he said, an oddly caring tone lacing his honey edged tenor.

I then realised that I'd been in here for a while, and Kate and Irina would be looking for me. "I should go," I said.

"Yeah, sure," he replied. I walked to the door, and when I looked back, his back was to me, and he was looking in his dresser. I saw a cursive design riding along his lower spine, going from one hip to the other. It was a simple, yet eloquent black spiralled design, with the words "Devil May Care" in old English print along the top. I smiled to myself, happy for once to be proven wrong. If it was for a hot tattoo on a hotter guy, then I'd willingly be wrong every day.

I walked down the corridor, stepping over a fallen sophomore on the floor, to where Irina and Kate were stood seemingly arguing with someone.

"What's going on, guys?" I asked.

"New couple," Irina replied. "Seth Clearwater and Rachel Black."

"No," I said firmly. "He's three years younger, and they don't suit."

Seth and Rachel both looked downtrodden and annoyed at my bluntness, but I didn't like the arrangement one bit. It was harsh, but everyone knew that I had final say. If these two got together, things wouldn't end up well. Especially with a man-eater like her. Besides, Seth was too young and inexperienced. She'd trample all over him.

"But, we re-" Rachel began.

"No," I interrupted. "End of story, full stop. Seth, maybe try Phoebe Richardson? Rachel, I think Paul Garroway is free," I stated. I turned away, leaving them in my wake.

Irina and Kate might not have agreed with my choice, but they knew better than to argue with me. The age gap was too big, and Rachel was a complete whore. She was a year younger than us, and had had more men than the three of us put together. Nothing slipped past me, and I knew for a fact that she had gotten pregnant last year before leaving for a 'family emergency.' Strange that her brother, Jacob stayed at school while she didn't. Either way, she wasn't pregnant when she came back. However, I had no reason to do anything, because she didn't ruin anyone's relationship but her own in the process.

* * *

Five hours later we were finally done looking round, had done our homework and headed down for dinner. We had checked out all the halls and scoured the dining room before grabbing ourselves some food. I was feeling pretty happy with myself; I had managed to avoid making any major changes to the cliques. The people I had moved were now sitting apprehensively with their new companions, and I had already put two couples together. One was sitting awkwardly opposite each other - that couple happened to be Lauren Mallory and Edward 'Blade' Cullen - and the other had begun sucking face just outside the dining room, away from the prying eyes of the teachers.

After dinner was over, I went over to the office, to check the notice board where any announcements were held before I left to meet Jasper. I saw a flyer for the autumn dance, the first one of the year. I made a small mental note to ask one of the girls to make me a dress, as I hadn't brought any from home that I liked well enough for a dance. Another notice was announcing the first football game of the season. I spent a few brief minutes looking at the board before heading down to the art block.

It was still light, but rainy, so I threw on my lightweight jacket and went to wait behind the building. No one was there when I arrived, and I was apprehensively wondering whether Jasper had stood me up, for lack of a better term. Ten minutes passed, and I was about to leave, angry at having been tricked into waiting here in the rain, when I saw a little blue dot running towards me. As it neared me, I saw that it was Jasper, his golden locks bouncing, slightly wet from the rain.

"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show," I stated, taking in his dishevelled appearance.

"Sorry, I had detention with Varner and I couldn't get out," he replied evenly. There was no emotion in his voice, and I wondered how he had gone from passionate to cold in just a few hours.

"Oh."

"So, you wanted to negotiate?" he prodded.

I was taken aback. "You were the one that said that. You wanted to meet me here."

"Only because it's going to take us a while to reach an agreement. You wouldn't want your friends to start thinking we weren't just talking, would you?"

"We weren't just talking," I countered.

"Yeah, well, we are now."

I couldn't help but feel a little dejected. I pushed the little feeling aside and looked stonily at him. "Well, then, let's get down to business."

"Oh, there's no need to be like that, darlin', you can have all the kisses in the world if you give up your little empire you've got going on," he replied, arrogance dripping from his tongue.

"You wish," I scoffed. "Why are you so dead set on me not leading everyone? What harm is it doing you?"

"It irritates the hell out of me how you can tell someone where they're meant to be and they jump to it. It's ridiculous how you can tell two people whether they ought to be together and they listen to you. I heard what you did to the Clearwater kid today. You told him no, and he _obeyed_ you. Do you seriously think you're the fucking queen of England?" he ranted.

"No, I worked hard to get to where I am. I like control, it makes me feel good to have people under me, catering to my every whim. Drug addicts feel good when they use, alcoholics feel good when they drink, and I feel good when people listen to me, do what I say. You need to accept that and please let me get on with it!"

He looked down at me insolently, twisting the tongue ring round and round in his mouth. "I'll make you a deal. I won't cause you too much trouble, if you leave me out of the little dictation. Alright?"

"_Too much trouble_? What the hell kind of a deal is that?"

"A damn good one, coming from me. You tell me that I have no idea what you can do to me if I don't fall into line. Let me tell you, Princess, you cannot even comprehend how much I can shake up your perfect little world," he whispered angrily, his perfect breath fanning my face as he leaned in to make his point.

I thought about it. Then an idea struck me. Why not just make him think I'm giving up. I can secretly work on bringing him into the fold, while he sits back under the illusion that he's free. It was foolproof, or so I thought.

"Deal," I whispered back sultrily. I stuck out my hand for him to shake, digging my nails into his stomach. He ignored my hand completely.

"I know a better deal-sealer," he murmured. Then he took my lips again, and pressed himself to me. The kiss was short, this time, and he was gone before I could even register the second slap on my ass in a week. _Damn._

I wandered back across campus, feeling slightly dazed from the kiss. I touched my lips delicately and could have sworn I heard a ghostly chuckle come from somewhere around me. There were plenty of buildings around, so Jasper could have been hiding behind one of them.

I finally entered the main building, not wanting to go straight to my dorm. The school was pretty quiet, with not many people around, so I decided to go for a walk, and see if anyone was about. To see if I could find anything else out. I wandered along the corridor of the first floor, where I had history, government and English. I got to the end of the corridor and could hear muffled groans and thumping noises. My eyes widened, and a smirk appeared on my face. _I told you nothing can ever get past me._ I followed the sounds, and saw that they were coming from Ms Swan's room. It didn't necessarily mean it was her; it could be anyone. There was a blind down in front of the little window, though, so I couldn't see in to find out who it was. So, I decided to be sneaky. I gently pushed the door handle down, easing it open. Thankfully, it wasn't locked, and I pushed it ajar slightly, making just enough space for my to get a decent view of the room. And, wow, did I get a view.

What I saw was Ms Swan lying on her back across a series of desks that had been pushed roughly around, completely stark naked apart from her bra. If that wasn't shocking enough, a tall, tanned boy rested - well, not quite resting - on top of her, his pants round his ankles. They were frantically feeling each other up, and too busy getting busy to notice me and my agape mouth. I didn't realise who the boy was until the secretive Ms Swan let it slip.

"Oh, Jacob, oh, god!"

If it were possible, my mouth hung open even more at this revelation. Jacob Black, renowned nice guy and school-famous virgin? Well, whatever the case, he clearly wasn't a virgin anymore. I had had enough, however, when he pulled out and moved his head down lower, and shut the door quietly, leaning against the wall.

"Holy shit."

I wandered back, in even more of a daze, to my dorm room. Then I belted up. I knew I had to focus, I couldn't risk letting things start to fall through the cracks, even though they were already beginning to. What with Jasper out to mess me up, and new revelations, I had to be more alert, more commanding and more harsh than ever before. A teacher-student relationship had never happened while I'd been at Forks Institute, and I was deciding to watch it play out before I sorted it. I figured I'd best keep it to myself for a while, at least.

With my mind full of swirling thoughts, I chose to start over tomorrow and tighten the leash, so to speak, otherwise things could get out of hand.

Once I had managed to get myself to sleep, my dreams were once again filled with Jasper Hale. I should have realised then that things weren't going to be that straightforward.

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**AN: So, good or bad? Yea or nay? Hit or miss? No or si? Non or oui? I think you probably get the picture…**

**Right, I know that things probably seem very Alice-centric right now, but that's simply because we're easing into the story, and our protagonist needs somewhere to vent, yes? I honestly don't like writing in the third person, which is why I'm writing in Alice's point of view. She is the queen bee, and knows everything. But don't worry, the main six will play a key part.**

**By the way, how many of you thought it was Edward that Bella was screwing behind closed doors. Don't worry, things'll straighten out soon enough. On another note, I honestly couldn't resist making Edward hardcore goth, and I once met someone who called themselves Wolf, so I figured why not Blade? Can I just make the point, Edward is hardcore goth, verging on punk, and is in no way emo. There is a difference, and he is not riding it lol. **

**Also, if anyone has any info on stuff like homecoming, would you mind telling me, because I'm English writing in an American setting, and I don't have a clue. **

**Lastly, thanks a lot for all the anonymous reviews, and Alice, you're along the right lines.**

**Thanks much (spesh for bearing with this note)**

**Abby x x**


	4. Camping and Control

**Disclaimer: Yes, I suddenly own Twilight. Not.**

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**AN: So, I'm not this chapter's biggest fan, it's kinda fillery. But we can manage can't we? There's some action. Thanks for reading once again, but can I just say:**

**I told you all from the beginning, this story was going to be in Alice's POV, and everyone was going to be OOC. Please don't review saying you don't like how it's all in her point of view, or you don't like certain characters. They're not very in depth as of yet, but they will be. If this isn't your cup of tea, don't read it. I welcome constructive criticism, but don't just say you don't like my version of the characters. **

**Sorry about that. Moving on, here's chapter four.**

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**Chapter Four: Camping and Control**

We spent Sunday doing absolutely nothing, as we usually did, and Monday rolled around quickly. It wasn't far enough into the school year for students to be groaning at the workload and homework due in, so there was still a slight buzz of anticipation in the atmosphere.

It was during breakfast, and Emmett had finally decided to grace us with his presence, though I had seen nothing of him over the weekend.

"Good morning, people, how's it going?" he asked loudly as he took his usual seat.

"It's great," I said in a clipped tone.

He seemed oblivious to my irritation as he carried on. "Anything exciting happen over the weekend?"

"You'd know if you'd been around," I snapped. Kate and James, both who had been listening in, looked at me in concern.

"Hey, cool it, Alice, I was busy," he replied indignantly.

"And what, pray tell, were you doing?"

"I was working on a project with Jacob, we got a big report for biology."

"On Saturday night?" I asked, knowing if he said yes then he'd be lying.

"Yes."

"You're lying," I stated coolly. My calm façade arose, and I gave him a blank, yet steely look.

"No. I'm not."

"Yes. You are. Because I know full well that on Saturday night Jacob Black was on the second floor of this building screwing Ms Swan!" I hissed, only loud enough for the people on my table to hear.

Emmett looked guilty, while Kate, Garrett, Irina and James all stared at me with their mouths wide open.

"Are you kidding me?" Garrett asked.

"Oh, close your mouths. It's not that shocking. She's young, divorced, and probably desperate. These boys are young, and ruled by their libido. Weirder things have happened here," I snapped, yet again. Looking mildly insulted, they closed their mouths and carried on with what they were doing before.

"So, Emmett," I said coldly. "What were you really doing on Saturday night?"

Then he glared at me. "You know what? It's really none of your business."

"Of course it's my business, I run this place."

"Then work it out, because there's not a chance in hell that I'll tell you."

"Why? You know I won't judge. I just want to know why you bailed on us on the first Saturday back. In fact, you didn't meet up with us at all in the summer, come to think of it. What are you hiding?"

He looked slightly sorrowful for a moment before fixing his angry mask back on. "Just drop it, Alice."

Just then, Rosalie Hale walked past, and upon seeing me looking in her direction, she greeted me.

"Hi, Alice. I didn't see you this morning."

"Shut it, Hale, can't you tell I'm busy?"

The little smile that was already faltering in fear of me left, as an expression caught halfway between timid anger and tears appeared on her face. She looked around her in embarrassment, as she realised that half the school had noticed the exchange, and were waiting for her to burst into tears. She bit her lip, moved her trumpet or whatever it was back up her shoulder and half sprinted out of the room. The school watched in excitement, and I anticipated that she would probably be made fun of later on. They'd all see her as the desperate wannabe, and she'd be made a laughing stock. Whatever, I had bigger things to deal with, as one of my friends was blatantly lying to my face.

"What the fuck, Alice? She was just being nice," Emmett said angrily.

"I was busy. She was interrupting. She'll deal with it," I defended.

"Not when the whole school is taking the piss. You know as well as I do that she'll be tortured for the next week, and terrified to come out of her room. That was totally uncalled for."

"What the hell? Why are you being so damn nice? You never gave a shit before, not when I shunned all the others, so why this one?"

He looked me in the eyes, clearly willing me to stop talking. And it clicked.

"You like her don't you? That's why you're being so protective. You like her, and don't want to be seen being your usual jackass self. I'm right, aren't I?" I asked maliciously.

"No, you're wrong. I've spoken to her once or twice, but I don't like her like that. I'm just sick of you treating everyone like they're shit under your shoes."

"But that's the thing, why did you never have a problem with it before?" I asked, exasperated.

"I did have one, you were just too fucking blind to see it. Too focused on your rich, bitchy games to notice anyone but yourself and your minions!"

With that, he stood and walked straight out of the dining room, leaving the stunned spectators in his wake. It wasn't often you saw heightened emotions coming from me, or my friends really, so an argument was a rare commodity when it wasn't between warring cliques or within those groups. I sent a fleeting glare round the room, daring anyone to say so much as a word about it. The rest of my friends didn't dare speak, for fear of me biting their heads off, too.

"I'm going to class," I announced, and picked up my bag. I pulled on my little black jumper as I walked out, rolling the sleeves up and sorting out the bottom of my shirt, which had somehow gotten tucked into my skirt. I stormed off to class, glaring at random strangers in the hall. It would have helped me to cool off, taking my anger out on people who blocked me in the corridor, telling them to move, and sometimes elbowing them. However, they all immediately parted like the red sea, and I was left even more pissed off than before. Normally I would have appreciated them moving, but today was not one of those days.

My mood only soured when I realised that I had History next, and sat behind me was none other than the infamous Jasper Hale. I groaned inwardly, remembering our deal. I didn't try to control him and make him conform, and he'd only cause me a little trouble. Personally, I thought I got a shit deal, but there wasn't much I could do about it. All I could do was make him think I was letting him off the hook, but secretly make him correspond without him even knowing it. I was a master of manipulation, and I didn't doubt that I could do this. Sure, he was a challenge, but he was nothing I couldn't handle.

At least, that's what I though until his beautiful self sauntered up to my desk and perched upon it.

"Can I help you, Hale?" I asked mockingly.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine."

"Shut up. I'm not in the mood."

"I guessed. That was some hell of a show in there, huh, Brandon? Care to tell me what it was about?" he asked, looking at me with his stupidly bright eyes.

"It's none of your concern."

"Aw, sweetheart, won't you tell me?" he mocked.

"Stop taking the piss and shut the fuck up," I snarled. He took a step back, placing his hands in the air in surrender.

"Sorry, darlin', just wondering."

"Like hell you were."

He was about to reply when the teacher came in and told us all to settle down. He took his seat, but managed to piss me off by leaning forward and breathing down my neck through the whole lesson. Something cold and light seemed to dance across it occasionally, and I wondered what it was, but refused to turn around to see what he was doing. In the end, I moved my desk forward a few inches to get away from him, but he just followed suit and I felt his desk pressed up against the back of my chair. I carried on ignoring him, and eventually got outside the classroom. Glad to be in an atmosphere not brimming with sexual tension, I took a few deep breaths before setting off to what should be a fun lesson: English, with Ms Bella Skank. Sorry, Swan.

On my way to class, I noticed that people behind me seemed to be sniggering, but when I turned around, they all shut up. It carried on all the way to English, and still people were laughing when I entered the room. It was only when Ms Skank spoke that I realised what was going on.

I was walking to my seat when I heard her.

"Alice, I know you young girls like to let boys know you're available, but is it really the best idea to write "whore" on the back of your neck?" she asked condescendingly.

My eyes widened, and I felt the back on my neck. I couldn't feel anything, and I certainly hadn't written it. Then I realised that the cold I felt in History was Jasper… writing on my neck. And with my short hair, it was easy to both read and write it. I then remembered that he was in this class, sat right in the middle of the classroom. I looked at him, and he was smirking jovially, his shoulders shaking. My fists clenched, and I resisted the temptation to scream in anger and pummel his smug little face. But I couldn't let him get to me. I hadn't had any idea how he was going to cause trouble, when no one ever rebelled, but he seemed to be doing an alright job.

"I'm sorry, Miss Swan, I just thought it might have been a good idea to inform people of my promiscuity," I said sarcastically, just as condescending as her.

"Well, you were clearly mistaken, weren't you?"

"That depends. If I get offers, then my attempts weren't in vain," I grinned, and sat down. She looked annoyed, a frown appearing on her slutty face. It was nothing a little high-school-boy wouldn't cure, I'm sure.

Raising her eyebrow, she addressed the class. "I've been told to take you all down to the hall with the other seniors. Principal Cullen has a small announcement to make," she declared. We all stood, grabbing our bags and followed her to the main hall. We grabbed seats in various places, and I noticed her smile in a sultry way at a lot of the male staff… and students.

It was only a few moments before Principal Cullen appeared on his podium.

"Good morning, everyone, I hope you all had a nice weekend. I'm glad to announce that this year, a new tradition will be starting. We're having a Senior Class Trip," he stated. Hushed whispers burst out as everyone spoke their thoughts on where we would be going.

"The trip will be for a week, and will take place seven miles away from here, deep in the forests." Everyone looked at each other, disappointment clear in their eyes as we wondered what sort of ridiculous plans they had for us.

"During this week, everyone will be put into a group of about either or ten people, and they will be your 'family' for the duration of the trip. You will eat with them, share a tent with them, and obviously, compete with them.

"The week will be based on bonding and team building activities, and will consist of competitions and games in which your team will try to gain the most points in order to win the trophy at the end of the week.

"The whole point of this trip is to get you to socialise with people you wouldn't normally talk to, and build new friendships as you learn to connect with each other…" he rambled.

I looked at James - who was sat next to me - in disgust. Build new friendships? It sounded like a load of bull to me. Principal Cullen knew that the cliques didn't become "BFFs" with each other, it just didn't happen. So what was he trying to do? Then my ears pricked up as I began listening again.

"If you're wondering who to thank for this brilliant idea, Ms Swan came up with the idea of some student bonding time. Which is why she, Mr Banner, Mr Mason, Miss O' Reilly and myself will all be joining you on this trip. We also look forward to getting to know you all as individuals."

Why does that not surprise me? Of course Ms Skank wants to get to know the male students on a personal level. I cringed as I recalled what I saw on Saturday night. Ugh.

After another fifteen minutes of lecturing us, telling us the right sorts of clothes and to 'be on our best behaviour,' we were dismissed, and we all headed back to Ms Skank's class. We carried on reading _Romeo and Juliet_ until the next lesson. Probably due to his missing homework, James was asked to stay behind at the end of the lesson. The rest passed quickly, as did lunch, until it was time to get changed, do my homework and head down to dinner. Not surprisingly, Emmett hadn't turned up. I don't think I'd have been very nice to him, but I wasn't sure if I didn't want him to be there.

But here came my dilemma. Ordinarily, I would have simply replaced him. Moved him down a table whilst I invited someone else to come sit with us… at least until he redeemed himself. But, I couldn't do that. Not to him, anyway. Because Emmett was my oldest, most loyal, only real friend in this whole damn school. And I wouldn't let a soul know, but it hurt that he didn't trust me enough to tell me what was going on. In all honesty, I didn't think that Rosalie was the real problem, just part of it. Despite what he said, I think he did like her in some way, but there was something missing…

It was something to do with Jacob Black, I knew that much, but I didn't know what. All Jacob really did was sing, dance and generally act quite camp. I hadn't been sure at all of his sexuality until I saw him quite comfortable between Ms Swan's legs. So, why was he spending so much time with Jacob?

Then again, he lied about spending time with Jacob. He told us he was with him on Saturday night, when I had solid proof that he wasn't. So what was he lying about?

I was pulled from my thoughts by James getting up to leave the table.

"Where are you going?" Irina asked.

James looked shiftily around. "I have to see Ms Swan. She gave me detention. I didn't do that homework she wanted."

"Want me to get you out of it?" I asked nonchalantly.

"It's a it late now," he said quickly.

"Uh-huh." I said, raising an eyebrow. "See you, then."

"Yeah, bye."

I let him go, and waited about ten minutes before getting up. I left before my friends asked me where I was going - I didn't want to have to explain my self, especially if I was wrong.

But I wasn't wrong. As I walked down the unremarkable corridor, I heard the familiar moans coming from that room. Assuming I would be undetected in my previous position, I angled myself and eased the door open. Confirming my suspicions, Ms Skank was getting comfy on her desk while James hovered over here. Both stark naked. My jaw dropped, and I stared disgusted once more. Not wanting to see any more, I closed the door and walked away.

What the fuck? _James?_ I knew he was a total man-whore, but Ms Swan? Really, did he have to? Completely shocked, I didn't notice where I was wandering to. When I finally snapped out of my disgusted contemplations, I realised that I was in the main office. In front of the notice board.

I decided it was fate, then, as the first thing I saw was the information and team lists for the camping trip. Next week. I scanned them, looking until I found my name.

_**Team Three:**_

_Alice Brandon_

_Ben Cheney_

_Edward Cullen_

_Jasper Hale_

_Rosalie Hale_

_Lauren Mallory_

_Emmett McCarty_

_Jessica Stanley_

Holy Shit.

Me, Alice Brandon.

In a team with Jasper Hale.

Was this school completely insane.

I might have been able to play the "whore" no the back of my neck thing off, but that didn't mean I didn't want to strangle him.

Hale?! Are you fucking kidding me?

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**AN: So… what did you think? Yes or no? Good or bad? Hit or miss? Pass or fail? You probably get it by now…**

**Jasper is a little devil, is he not? And what was the school thinking, putting him in a team with Alice. We'll see next chapter how she deals with that. **

**What is Emmett hiding? A secret budding romance with Rosalie? Or even Jacob… Find out next week… I sound like a cheesy soap opera. I'll shush now. **

**And James and Bella… this could get interesting. Anyway.**

**THANK YOU ALL FOR READING AND REVIEWING (hint hint.)**

_**Review, it'll make Jasper come draw on your neck with permament marker and write 'MINE'**_

**Have a great day,**

**Abby x**


	5. Persuasion and Protection

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Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight.

**AN: So, there's a little treat for you halfway through…**

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**Chapter Five: Persuasion and Protection**

To say I was unhappy would be an understatement. Livid would be a more appropriate description for my feelings as I walked away from the notice board and straight to Principal Cullen's office. I walked briskly, or as briskly as my irritatingly short legs would carry me. Luckily, Principal Cullen's office was only down the hall, and I was soon outside the elegant looking room.

I knocked twice, and waited for an answer. After a moment, I heard a muffled voice.

"Come in."

I entered, closing the door quietly behind me. "Principal Cullen," I greeted calmly.

"Ah, Alice. To what may I owe this pleasure?" he asked cheerfully. Uncle Carlisle was a very good looking man; that was probably where Edward got his looks from.

"I'm here for business, Uncle," I replied.

"I see… and what, pray tell, is this business?" he said lightly. He had always been amused by my open controlling tendencies, and generally humoured me. Then again, I was his darling niece, and I had him wrapped around my little finger.

"The camping trip," I stated simply.

"And what about it?"

"I need my team switching."

"I'm sorry, Alice, no can do. The teams have already been decided, and they're not being changed."

"Uncle, I don't see why you can't make a few minor changes, just take a couple of people out of my group-"

"Alice, we spent ages trying to get the numbers relatively even. Your team has a couple less people in it anyway," he reasoned.

"Replace them, then. I know you can. Even just get rid of Hale."

"No one is being replaced or removed. Understand?" His voice had a tone of finality to it, and I knew there was no point in arguing. Whether it was because this man was more of a father to me than my own was, or because he was the principal, I have no idea, but I never argued with Carlisle. "Why do you want to switch Rosalie? Have you two not been getting along?"

"It's Jasper, not Rosalie," I muttered.

He smiled widely. "I see…"

"No, you don't see," I said, exasperated. "He is the most arrogant, maddening, infuriating boy on the face of the earth. He's a complete prick, and-"

"Alice," Carlisle warned.

"Sorry," I amended. "But still, can you not move him at all?"

"No, Alice, I'm sorry. Maybe the whole thing will help you two to get along."

"Yeah, sure," I mumbled, heading out of the door.

"Oh, and Alice?" he called.

"Yeah?"

"I'd like a student's perspective; how is Ms Swan so far? Is she alright?"

I held in a laugh. "Yeah, she's great. Getting on with the students _very_ well."

"Great. Well, I'll see you later, Alice. I was wondering, are you going home for Christmas? It's ages away, I know, but Esme was wondering," he added.

"My dad said maybe. So probably not," I admitted sadly. If my dad ever said "maybe," or "I'll see,?" it nearly always meant no. He rarely had time for me. He'd even forgotten my birthday last year because he was celebrating his girlfriend's birthday, which happened to be on the same day.

"I take it you're coming to ours?" Carlisle asked.

"If that's alright."

"It's more than fine. You say this all the time; you're family, we love having you. Besides, Edward gets so bored on his own for two weeks."

"Cool, thanks."

"Anytime, Alice."

I left his room and journeyed back to my dorm. When I arrived there, I saw Rosalie sat on her bed, reading. She looked up at me, and quickly averted her gaze back down, avoiding me. I bit my lip, unsure whether or not to apologize. What if she told Jasper? He was already annoying enough as it was, I didn't want to pit him against me even more.

"Hey, Rosalie."

She looked back up at me, a baleful look edging her features. "Hi," she said in a quiet voice.

"I, uh, wanted to say, uh, sorry about today. I didn't mean to snap," I said uncomfortably. I wasn't the best person in the world when it came to apologising.

"That's alright," she replied. "I get it, there's a divide. I don't talk to you, and everyone's happy. I understand. I won't bother you again."

I looked at her, frowning slightly. Why did that make me feel slightly guilty. That shouldn't make me guilty at all. So why was it? True, it was only a tiny amount of remorse, but I shouldn't feel anything at all. I was cool, calm, collected. I knew how to control my emotions, and barely knew the meaning of the word guilt.

"Right," I said, after a brief pause. I walked into the bathroom, grabbing myself some pyjamas and getting changed. When I was done, I sat down on my bed, grabbed a notebook and started some of my homework, an essay due in for History in two days' time. Rosalie went to sleep before me; I was awake for a long time, trapped in my thoughts. We were only a couple of weeks into the term, and so many things were already going wrong.

To start with, I felt guilty over something. That itself was a small disaster, as I could put up a nice, charismatic front, that was a must for a queen bee, but inside, some element of black hole was necessary. Which I had. Until today.

Secondly, Emmett was being disloyal. He was bailing on us a lunch, dinner and breakfast half the time, and lying blatantly. There was something going on with him, and I had no idea what. Thirdly, Ms Swan was having it away with half the male students, and I had no idea what to do about it. Tell on her? Watch it play out? Take notes and use my knowledge for blackmail at a later date?

My last, and most annoying problem was a certain Jasper Hale. He was annoying, frustrating, irritating, irksome, and so unbelievable sexy. He was an enigma; I never seemed to see him when I looked for him, but he always popped up at random intervals. He hated me, I was sure, but I was also sure that he was undeniably attracted to me. As I was to him. The lust was clear, blatant and bold, but were our social divides too much? Was his aversion to my ruling too much for him to handle, so much that we could never be together?

_Whoa, what? Together, who said anything about that?_ Jasper and I hated each other! We couldn't have a civil conversation; all of them ended in shouting or snogging. It wasn't logical. Nothing could come of out impromptu agreement, I must make sure of it.

Attempting to calm myself, I put some calm music on my iPod and drifted to sleep, awaiting the next day, where I would be forced to face all these problems again.

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**JPOV**

I awoke late on Tuesday morning, a grin adorning my face despite the fact that I only had half an hour to get ready and grab some breakfast. My reason for smiling was simple; I had seen the group lists for the camping trip, and having Brandon in my team was like hitting oil - pure gold. Sure, she annoyed me to hell and back, but tormenting her was one of the highlights of this dire place. Forks Institute of Learning. Seriously, who calls a school an institute?

So today was the perfect opportunity to get under her skin. I made my way briskly to breakfast, almost bumping into her as I entered the dining room. She was leaving early, probably eager to get to class. That was where she confused me; she was all about ruling the school, controlling people, yet she gave a damn about her schoolwork. Perhaps because she knew she wouldn't get very far in the sense or earning trust by slacking off? Whatever the reason was, she had everyone - with the exception of myself - wrapped around her manipulative little finger. Even my sister was enthralled by her, though she hated to admit it. In fact, I wasn't just looking forward to pissing Brandon off; she had upset my sister, and though Rose and I rarely got on, I was protective of her. No one hurts my sister and gets away with it.

After grabbing an apple for my breakfast, I headed straight to my - sorry, _our_ - first class: Chemistry. And I was seated next to none other than Brandon herself. I was there just as the big rush of people began filing in, and took my seat next to her, pulling my things out of my bag. I sat back when I was done, balancing on the back two legs of my stool. It wasn't intended to annoy her, but it seemed to be a perk.

"Would you stop that?" she hissed when she had had enough of me rocking backwards and forwards on the back two legs of the stool.

"Sorry, Brandon, was that annoying you?" I grinned.

"Is there a problem, Mr Hale, Miss Brandon?" the teacher asked.

"Not at all, sir," I answered quickly before she could tell him yes. I settled for passing her a note.

_I take it you saw the group lists for the camping trip? _I wrote. She looked at the note, trying to ignore it. But I could tell she had read it as her petite features scrunched up into a scowl. She refused to write back, though, so I opted for prodding her with my pencil until she sighed angrily and wrote back.

_**Unfortunately, yes. Beware, if I can't get them changed, you may end up six feet under by the end of the week.**_

_Aww, why? And here I thought you loved me._

_**In your dreams, Hale.**_

_Always. _I held back a smirk at that last sentence, watching a disgusted expression creep up onto her face. Well, it was a cross between disgusted and flattered. With what was probably a hint of intrigue in there, too.

That was another thing that confused me about her. She said she hated me. I knew I hated her. To an extent, anyway. Yet, she gave no fight when I kissed her. I did it on an impulse, the first time, anyway. The day in my dorm room, she was just… hot. Especially when she was pissed. It was pure lust that compelled me to seize her, pushing he up against the door. She was amazingly hot, and if I had my way, we'd be doing a lot more than kissing. I'd eventually get her there, I just had to make sure she trusted me first. Earn her trust, bed her, and carry on creating even more havoc in her perfect little kingdom - my three-in-one goal for this school year. Huh, and my family told me I had no aspiration.

The remaining minutes turned swiftly into hours, and before I knew it, dinner was upon us, and I confronted a sophomore on my way in, just out of view of Brandon and her cronies. He had just come out of the room muttering profanities and cursing the 'cliques.' I held back a laugh. It was then that I realised who the kid was. Seth Clearwater - the kid that Brandon had stopped from going out with Rachel Black the other day.

"Hey, kid," I said. "I'll give you fifty dollars to start a food fight, starting by aiming something at Brandon."

"Are you serious? That's signing my own warrant. No way," he replied firmly.

"You're smart." It was true. No kid in the right mind would do anything to piss Brandon off. "I'll give you a hundred."

The kid paused for a moment, contemplating. "It's risky."

Then it was my turn to ponder. The kid was smart, and seemed to know how Brandon worked. Then I hit an idea. "I'll make you a deal. I'm somewhat immune to her… charms. I'll do what I can to see that you can't be touched, and take you under my wing, so to speak."

"Under your wing? Why are you immune, you got something against her?"

I grinned. "Let's just say I'm her worst nightmare. What do you say, kid? Fancy being my assistant?"

"You've got yourself a deal."

"Excellent. What's your name?"

"Seth. Seth Clearwater."

"Jasper Hale," I replied, extending my hand. "I'll give you fifty now, and the other half afterwards if you do it well, got it?"

"I'll be happy with the fifty. If you're granting me immunity, that's better than cash."

"I think I'll enjoy working with you," I smirked.

I handed him the money and watched him walk back in. He sat down next to some other sophomores, only a couple of tables away from Brandon. I watched in delight as he picked up a large, steaming, handful of pasta, clearly covered in what was definitely a tomato sauce. My grin only grew as he pulled his hand back. His fellow freshmen had only seconds to react before they screamed and ducked. _Drama queens._

It was like in the movies. The pasta flew almost in slow motion through the air in a perfect arc, various lumps of sauce and spaghetti flying to the short firing range on either side of it. I realised that Seth had perfect aim, as half the pasta landed all over Brandon's face and hair, and the rest on her chest, dripping juicily down her white, expensive-looking top. The lace adorning the top was now an orangey-red colour, random spots and circles all over it.

Adding to the cliché of the situation, Brandon did your typical 'queen bee' scream, and stood up, eyes wide and nostrils flaring.

"WHO THREW THAT?" she shrieked, putting any nearby banshees out of business.

No one owned up, naturally. That was my cue. I sauntered in arrogantly, straight down the middle of the room, right past Brandon's table. When I passed her, I deliberately smoothed down my crisp blue t-shirt, brushing some pretend lint off my shoulder. I then looked to my side, pretending to be shocked at the sight.

"Didn't you know, Brandon? The spaghetti goes _in _your mouth, not around it," I smirked. The still shell-shocked audience became even more shocked at my outright defiance of Brandon. _Sycophants. _Only one or two sniggers were heard.

I walked up to Seth. "Come on, Seth. We have business to attend to."

He looked at me warily, which was only to be expected. But there was also awe in his expression. He had never seen anyone stand up to her. I decided then and there to go back on my agreement of sorts that I had made with Brandon. She could forget me not making 'too much trouble.' The minute I got her into my bed, I was going to bring her down.

He followed me out of the room, and we were halfway out when she screamed again.

"It was you! You made him do this!" she shrieked.

"Well done, Brandon, you want a medal?"

"Seth!" she called sharply. "Come here, sweetie."

"No way, Brandon, he's with me."

"He can't be _with you. _I run this place!"

I grinned. Her calm demeanour was evaporating, fast.

"Not if I can help it. Ladies and gentlemen, Your highness," I announced mockingly, "if I may introduce my assistant, Seth Clearwater."

With that, we left the dining room, both of us going our separate ways after o congratulated him. It was an hour later, as I was walking around the grounds, when I found myself face to face with her.

She was there, freshly cleaned up, hording a scowl that could kill, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her nostrils were still angrily flared from before, and her petite figure was quivering in anger.

"What the fucking hell was that, Hale?" she snarled.

"That was revenge. Hurt my sister again, and you will pay," I growled back, equally as angry.

"You went back on our agreement. You said you wouldn't cause too much trouble."

"Like I said, you hurt my sister. It was an exception, and it won't happen again. Not on that scale." _Not for a while, anyway. _

"What makes you think that you can just publicly humiliate me li-"

"Must we go into this again?" I asked. "Look, I hate you and all that you stand for. You have a mild case of OCD, I suspect, and hate that I like to mess you up. I like to annoy you, and I'm not scared of you, and therefore I find ways to amuse myself. Deal with what I throw at you, or it just gets worse, got it?"

She looked stunned for a moment. "I hate you."

I laughed. "Is that the best you can come up with? Whatever, Brandon, I'll be seeing you later." I walked closer to her, placing my hands on her hips, pulling her towards me. I gave her a light peck on the lips and squeezed her ass before pulling away and jogging down the path. I could have sworn I heard a faint "fuck you" on my way, and wouldn't have put it past her.

That night, I slept well. Whether it was satisfaction in knowing I had gotten to her, or perhaps just a job well done, something made me feel great, and it wasn't going to go away quickly.

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**I'm bored of asking for reviews. Do what you will, hope you enjoyed.**

**If you're confused or anything, let me know.**

**X**


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay. So I really don't have a good reason for not updating. I promise, promise, promise I'm not bored of this story. **

**My main reason is that I haven't been able to find appropriate inspiration. I'm not sure why I began a fic where they're in high school when I really dislike the lack of drama available to apply to them. Also, it's quite hard continuously writing from within Alice's head. It's easy to write through Bella, or even Edward, because their characters are very deeply developed and we know them. I know this story is very OOC, but I still don't seem to be able to go at it.**

**I know that really is no excuse, and if you'll bear with me a while longer I _will_ get a chapter up. It's the camping next hopefully, which should with any luck turn out alright. If I can't get it right, I will probably abandon this story and move onto something easier to write. For me anyway. If anyone wants to adopt the story and reckons they'd do a better job with it, let me know.**

**I'm sorry!**

**Abby xx**


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